Dunbar Hotel 4255 S. Central Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90011 (Constructed 1928)

W.E.B. Du Bois, celebrated author, Harvard’s first African American Ph.D. graduate, and hotel guest described the Dunbar Hotel as “a jewel done with loving hands… a beautiful inn with soul.” Timeline • 1928: Dunbar Hotel Constructed • 1928-1970: Period of Significance • 1974: Designated a Historic-Cultural Monument (#131) • 1974-1987: Dunbar Hotel vacant and in decline • 1976: Listed on National Register • 1989-1990: Dunbar Hotel unsympathetically rehabilitated & hotel rooms converted into SRO units • 2008: National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Form for historic resources associated with African Americans in Los Angeles • 2009: CRA hired PCR to Prepare HSR • 2011: Thomas Safran Associates took ownership of Dunbar Village through competitive proposal process held by Los Angeles Housing Department and CRA • 2011-2013: PCR provided guidance to Steven Fader Architects • 2013: Rehabilitation completed (41 affordable senior units)

Significance

• Built as the Hotel Somerville by Dr. John Alexander Somerville in 1928, the Dunbar Hotel played a key role in L.A.’s African American community for decades.

• The hotel provided first-class accommodations for African Americans in segregated Los Angeles, who were denied comparable lodging elsewhere, and was considered the finest African American hotel in the nation.

• At the heart of the Central Avenue jazz scene, many prominent jazz musicians stayed or performed there, including Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Bessie Smith.

• Mediterranean Revival style architecture constructed by African American contractors and craftsman

HSR: Documentation of Historic Appearance

Primary (East) Central Avenue Elevation, Circa 1928 Secondary (South) 42nd Place Elevation, Circa 1928 HSR: Documentation of Historic Appearance

Postcard, Circa 1938 HSR: Documentation of Alterations

Circa 1987 HSR: Condition Survey

Documentation of 425 character-defining features and spaces associated with the Dunbar Hotel’s period of significance (1928-1970) in Access, along with written description, condition (poor, fair, good, or excellent), priority for rehabilitation (urgent, high, medium, or low) and treatment recommendations. Rehabilitation: Project Scope

• Conversion of the upper floors from SRO to apartments

• Rehabilitation of the public spaces for use by residents

• Rehabilitation of the historic retail spaces

• Preservation of historic fabric, both exterior and interior

Rehabilitation: Philosophy • Preserve historic fabric wherever possible • Maintain the historic spatial arrangements of the public spaces (and undo prior incompatible alterations where possible) • Recreate lost elements • Provide contemporary interventions that are compatible with but distinguishable from the building’s period of significance, all within the available budget.

Historic Appearance of Lobby, Circa 1928 Historic Appearance of Mezzanine, Circa 1928 Lobby Before Rehabilitation, 2011 Lobby Before Rehabilitation, 2009 Lobby Before Rehabilitation, 2009 Lobby Mural Before Restoration Lobby During Rehabilitation Mural Restoration by Chameleon Paintworks, Inc. Lobby After Rehabilitation, 2013 Lobby After Rehabilitation, 2013 Historic Appearance of Atrium, Circa 1928 Atrium Before Rehabilitation, 2009 Atrium Enclosed Circa 1989 Rehab Atrium Before Rehabilitation, 2009 Atrium During Rehabilitation Atrium After Rehabilitation, 2013 One Original Fountain and Ceramic Tile in Atrium Replicated Atrium After Rehabilitation, 2013 Replication of Exterior and Interior Wall Sconces Atrium After Rehabilitation, 2013 Corridor Floors 3 to 5 Before Rehabilitation, 2009 Corridor Floors After Rehabilitation, 2013 Patterned Carpet in Mezzanine and Corridors Replicated to Match Original Historic Appearance of Hotel Room, Circa 1928 SRO Unit Before Rehabilitation, 2011 SRO Unit Converted into Apartment, After Rehabilitation, 2013 Secondary (South) Elevation, Before Rehabilitation, 2009 Restored and Enhanced Residential Entry, Secondary (South) Elevation, After Rehabilitation, 2013

Primary (East) Elevation, Before Rehabilitation, 2009 Primary (East) Elevation, After Rehabilitation, 2013 Open House, June 26, 2013